Belonuchus juanmorronei, Márquez & Asiain, 2022

Márquez, Juan & Asiain, Julieta, 2022, Taxonomy of the Mexican species of Belonuchus Nordmann (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae), Zootaxa 5152 (1), pp. 1-129 : 79-80

Belonuchus juanmorronei sp. nov.

http://zoobank.org/NomenclaturalActs/4e892c36-fd33-4c72-90c0-aa7f3406de19

Figs. 8e , 11–l , 16f , 20i , 25a , 28b

Total body length in male 9.8 mm, in females 8.1 mm (range 7.8–8.4 mm). Body completely black, but legs reddish-brown in females.

Head: quadrate shape, in male slightly widened posteriad; ratio length/width in male 0.97, in females 0.93 (without variation). Dorsal surface with sulcate longitudinal midline visible in anterior half of head; punctures slightly denser than in majority of species and more extensive; front moderately foveate, fovea extending backward of level of antennal insertions. Posterior corners with punctural grooves forming oblique roughness resembling a diffuse temporal carina. Eyes very small, 0.34 times the cephalic lateral length, slightly protruding laterally. Antennomere 4 almost as long as wide, 5–10 transverse. Mandibles shorter than head (ratio in male 0.71, in females 0.73); left mandible with two small middle teeth close to each other, interspace C-shaped; right mandible with only one middle tooth; each mandible additionally with a very small basal tooth; mandibular channel moderately developed, with external margin not carinate and internal margin like impressed line well developed that extending beyond level of most apical middle tooth. Apical palpomere of maxillary and labial palpi nearly 1.25 times longer than preapical palpomere. Ventral surface with sparse, fine punctures, mainly toward posterior corners; with two fine setiferous punctures placed in external anterior quarter. Head wider than pronotum (ratio in male 1.29, in females 1.20, range 1.19–1.22). Neck in ventral view with rough mesh-like microsculpture.

Thorax: each dorsal row of pronotum with five punctures; pronotum slightly longer than wide (ratio in male 1.15, in females 1.14, range 1.13–1.15) and wider at anterior corners than at posterior corners (ratio in male and females 1.14, range 1.13–1.15). Scutellum with punctures slightly bigger than on elytra, as dense as on elytra, where they are dense and combined with finer mesh-like microsculpture. Prosternum without modifications. Intercoxal process of mesoventrite ( Fig. 11–l ) triangularly scutellum-shaped, distinctly extended posteriad, apex not very acute; transverse discal ridge well developed, broadly U-shaped or V-shaped, reaching close to margin of intercoxal process laterally. Male damaged and without anterior legs; profemur of female with four to five small spines near internal apex. Rest of legs (except tarsomeres) without modifications. Tarsomeres dorsally clearly flattened and even slightly excavated.

Abdomen: first three visible tergites with posterior basal transverse carina well developed; adjacent zone moderately depressed; with mesh-like microsculpture, giving a rough aspect in this depression and above it; visible tergites 1–4 with wide-superficial punctures combined with fine punctures moderately dense near anterior margin and gradually decreasing in density toward posterior margin; visible tergites 5–6 with fine, sparse punctures. First visible sternite with complete posterior basal transverse carina, visible sternites 2–3 with incomplete posterior basal transverse carina, interrupted at sides; remaining sternites without posterior basal transverse carina; pattern of punctures on sternites similar to that of tergites, but slightly denser. Male pregenital sternite weakly emarginate at posterior margin ( Fig. 16f ). Male genital sternite very elongate (3.47 times longer than wide), moderately asymmetrical, anterior portion occupying 20% and posterior portion 80% of its length, apical emargination deep and wide ( Fig. 20i ). Abdominal styli slender.

Aedeagus: length 1.0 mm; oval-elongate shape; apex acute; apical part slightly longer than 1/2 of aedeagus length and clearly narrower than basal part, although in lateral view this difference is not very conspicuous; internal sac visible ( Fig. 25a ).

Variability. The male has a small mid-ventral tooth on the right mandible that protrudes from the mid-dorsal tooth, but this was not noted in the female specimens. Little variation was noted both in measurements and ratios, as in other structures, such as brown legs of females and black legs in male.

Taxonomic comments. This species can be confused with B. nigerrimus due to the black color of body, but in taxonomic comments of this species their differences have been highlighted.

Etymology. The name of this species is dedicated with pleasure to Juan José Morrone Lupi (Zoology Museum, Faculty of Sciences, UNAM), for his magnificent contributions on systematic and biogeography of insects.

Type material ( one male, four females): Holotype (male, CC-UAEH): “ México: Hidalgo, La Misión, Lomas del Pericón , bosque mesófilo de montaña perturbado, 1377 m, N21°07’110”, W99°06’2”, colecta directa bromelia, colecta #13, 15-III-2008, I. Garrido y J. Márquez cols.”. Paratypes: Mexico: Hidalgo: “Tlanchinol, La Cabaña, bosque mesófilo de montaña, 1485 m, N21°1.357’ W98°38.556’, trampa de intercepción de vuelo #4, 18 a 25-III- 2006, C. Ortiz y M. C. Pedraza ” (f 1, CC-UAEH). “Zacualtipán, camino a Tizapán, bosque mesófilo de montaña, 1690 m, N20° 39.076’ W98°36.055’, trampa de intercepción de vuelo #2, 14 al 28-IV-2011, J. Márquez col.” (f 2, CC-UAEH). Puebla: “Zacapoaxtla, Ex-hacienda Apulco, cascada La Gloria, N19°54´12”, W97° 37´00”, 1,508 m, dentro de cañada bosque mesófilo de montaña rodeado por pinos, trampa de intercepción de vuelo, 18 a 28-V-2021, familia Márquez-Asiain cols.” (f 1, MAAS).

Figures

FIGURE 8. Dorsal view of males of: a) Belonuchus aenigmaticus (paratype), b) B. nigerrimus, c) B. optatus, d) B. platypterus, e) B. juanmorronei, f) B. abnormalis, g) B. pectinipes (paralectotype), h) B. viridipennis. Scale bars = 2.5 mm.

FIGURE 11. Mesoventrite of males of: a) Belonuchus cariniventris, b) B. oxyporinus, c) B. rufisternus, d) B. tepoztecus, e) B. bidens, f) B. jalappensis, g) B. longitarsus, h) B. ephippiatus, i) B. dichrous, j) B. flavipennis, k) B. platypterus, l) B. juanmorronei, m) B. iridescens. Red arrow: intercoxal process of the mesoventrite, blue arrow: transverse discal ridge, green arrow: longitudinal carina in anterior half.

FIGURE 16. Male pregenital sternite of: a) Belonuchus moroni, b) B. dichrous, c) B. flavipennis, d) B. aenigmaticus, e) B. nigerrimus, f) B. juanmorronei, g) B. godmani, h) B. magnistylus, i) B. trochanterinus, j) B. rufipennis, k) B. basiventris, l) B. connexus, m) B. xanthomelas, n) B. ephippiatus, o) B. optatus.

FIGURE 20. Male genital sternite of: a) Belonuchus cifuentesi, b) B. dichrous, c) B. flavipennis, d) B. aenigmaticus, e) B. iridescens, f) B. nigerrimus, g) B. optatus, h) B. platypterus, i) B. juanmorronei, j) B. abnormalis, k) B. pectinipes, l) B. viridipennis, m) Belonuchus sp. Q, n) B. cyanipennis, o) B. godmani. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 25. Ventral (left) and lateral (right) view of the aedeagus of: a) Belonuchus juanmorronei, b) B. abnormalis, c) B. pectinipes, d) B. viridipennis, e) Belonuchus sp. Q, f) B. cyanipennis, g) B. godmani. Scale bar = 0.5 mm (all figures).

FIGURE 28. Geographical distribution in Mexico and Guatemala of: a) Belonuchus colon, B. tenuistylus and B. trochanterinus; b) B. oxyporimimus, B. pulcher and B. juanmorronei.